What if As Time Goes By
by Katy M VT
Summary: John shows up to confront his father.


Dean had caught up with Henry and found him painting some sort of sidgil on the door. "You're going to try to go back aren't you?" Dean asked.

"I have to. I have to go back for my son. I can save him," Henry said.

"No. You don't know that you'll make it. And if you do, Sam and I might never be born." Dean took a moment to consider that. It might not be a bad thing. His and Sam's lives sucked. "We stop the Apocalypse."

"If I go back the Apocalypse may not happen," Henry countered.

"But,…" Dean was cut off when someone materialized in front of him.

"Dad?" It couldn't be his Dad. This had to be a trick of Abaddon, somehow.

Henry looked at the man Dean had addressed. "This is John?" he asked. He couldn't reconcile this man as being his little boy. This man was older than he was. And he looked sad and tired.

"Maybe," Dean said. Shapeshifters and Leviathans didn't just materialize in the middle of a conversation. A demon could, though.

"It's me, Dean."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm not sure. I'm a little confused. Right after you shot the yellow-eyed demon, I walked into the light and was brought up to Heaven. When I got there, an angel granted me a reward for helping to kill the demon before I take up residence in Heaven with your mother."

"So, what did you ask for?" Henry asked. He wanted to know everything about this man, who was his son.

John glanced at the man and realized he looked familiar. "Wait a minute? Are you my father?"

Henry nodded and took a step towards John.

John stepped back. "I asked to speak to you so that I could know why you left me. With the yellow-eyed demon dead, I knew my sons would be OK. So, I wanted to know why you didn't want yours."

"I did. I time travelled back in time and apparently got stuck here. I was trying to get back to you when Dean stopped me."

John looked to Dean for an explanation, just as Dean's phone rang. Dean checked the display.

"Sammy, what did you find out?"

"Not Sammy. I'm much better looking."

"Abaddon," Dean concluded.

"That's right. How about a good old-fashioned trade. Your brother for the key and Henry." She gave him the meeting place. "If you don't show up he dies."

Dean hung up his phone and ran his hand over his mouth.

"Abaddon has Sam," Henry guessed.

Dean nodded. "She wants to trade for you and the key."

"If I go back to before she breaks up the meeting this will never happen," Henry said.

"But you might not make it," Dean reminded him.

"Please," John said. "Stay and save my son."

Henry looked at his son begging him to save his son. Maybe he could at least do this right. "Alright."

They went out to the car. Dean got in the driver's seat, and after a look John got in the front passenger seat and Henry in the back.

"What did you mean earlier, when you said that you and Sam stopped the Apocalypse?" Henry asked.

"Long story," Dean replied.

"You stopped the Apocalypse?" John was amazed at these sons he had raised. He wished he had shown his pride more when he was alive. "How?"

"You don't want to know." He didn't want to tell his father that they were leaving his other son to rot in the cage with Michael and Lucifer. "So, do you have a way to slow this demon down?" Dean asked Henry. He needed to come up with a plan and change the subject.

"We could carve a devil's trap onto a bullet," Henry suggested.

Dean and John exchanged a glance. Why hadn't they ever thought of that. It was genius. "OK, Dad will take the shot from outside," Dean decided. "She doesn't even know about you."

SSS

Dean and Henry walked into the warehouse. Sam was kneeling next to Abaddon. His hands were tied behind his back and his face was all bloody.

"Was that really necessary?" Dean asked angrily.

"Necessary? No. Fun? Yes." Abaddon smiled, flicked up her hand and Sam fell the rest of the way to the floor and screamed out. "Now, send over Henry and the key and you can have your brother back."

This wasn't going the way Dean planned. He had wanted to get Sam out of the line of fire, but he wasn't sure that he would be capable of walking. "Fine," he said and showed her what he hoped she thought was the key and stuck it in Henry's pocket. "I'll send Henry over there. You send Sam over here."

Sam heard the instructions from where he was lying on the floor. Was Dean insane? He could barely move.

Abaddon bent over and lifted Sam to a standing position. When she let go, he threatened to fall over again. She grabbed him and Dean saw her whisper something in his ear and make a threatening gesture with her hand. Somehow Sam managed to stay upright.

He nodded to Henry. Henry started walking across the floor. Sam took a couple of tentative steps. Dean assumed that Henry would slow down his pace, but he kept walking. Dean started to walk forward. He had to get to Sammy. Unfortunately, Henry had nearly reached Abaddon and Sam was only a few steps way. She grabbed Sam back and stuck her hand into Henry's stomach. She reached into his pocket and pulled out a deck of cards.

"Very funny. Where's the real key?" she asked as she pushed Henry to the ground.

Dean looked toward the back door. He saw John raising his gun to shoot. Unfortunately, Abaddon noticed Dean's eyes being drawn to the spot behind her. She grabbed Sam and spun around to face the new threat.

"Really? A gun?" These people knew what she was. Why would they think they could hurt her with a gun? That thought made her think it was possible they knew something she didn't. "Put the gun down and come inside," she commanded.

"Dad?" Sam whispered, confused.

John put the gun on the floor, lifted his hands and went to join Dean. He had no idea what they were going to do now.

"The key," Abaddon commanded.

Sam shook his head. He had found out what the key did. They couldn't let her have it.

"You'll kill us all anyway," Dean said.

"NOW!" she shrieked in that supernaturally loud, high-pitched voice and simultaneously caused Sam to fall to his knees with a new pain.

"OK," Dean said and reached into his pocket. He pulled out his gun and shot her in a single motion. Never to leave anything to chance he had had all three of them equipped with a devil's trap bullet.

He then pulled out his machete and hacked off her head. "There was a devil's trap on that bullet. You're trapped in that severed head. You may not be dead, but you'll wish you were." Dean gloated. He then rushed over to Sam, while John went to Henry.

"Son, I'm proud of you. I'm proud of the sons that you raised. I wish I could have been around to teach you what I know, but you did good without me," Henry said with his last breath and then closed his eyes.

"Sorry, Dad," Dean said.

"Dad, where did you come from?" Sam asked.

"He got an angel wish grant when we killed the yellow eyed demon," Dean answered for his father. "His wish was to ask his father why he left him."

"I'm glad you found out that he didn't," Sam said and then moaned. He lay back on the floor.

"So, do we even know what that key is?" John asked.

Sam tried to sit up again. "We have to destroy it."

"What does it do?" Dean asked.

"It opens the cage," Sam answered.

"THE cage?"

"Yeah."

"What cage?' John asked, totally baffled as to what his two hunter sons could be so afraid of.

"The cage that keeps Lucifer," Dean answered.

"She wanted to let Lucifer out," John finished. "Good thing we stopped her."

Dean realized something. "That's why she hurt you, isn't it?"

Sam nodded.

John was confused again. "Why?"

"Long story," Dean said again.

John was beginning to see why Sam had always been so frustrated when he hadn't told him things when they were growing up.

"I've got time. The wish was for 24 hours. It's been about 8."

"Sam's Lucifer's vessel. Lucifer needs permission to enter him. Abaddon was trying to coerce that permission," Dean answered.

"That's not all, Dean," Sam whispered.

"What else?" Dean asked glaring down at Abaddon. If he could figure out some other way to hurt her before burying her he would. Apparently she did something more to Sam than he could see and that was enough.

"She made me drink her blood," he whispered even softly than before. "I'm sorry."

"Not your fault," Dean said. He had to find somewhere for Sammy to detox. The panic room was long gone. "We'll fix you up."

"It's too later for that."

Dean snapped his head back to Sam. "What do you mean?"

"She's the most powerful demon we've ever met. More so than Lillith or Alistair. Drinking her blood was like drinking the blood of five demons."

"What are you saying, Sammy?" Dean already knew, but he refused to believe.

John just watched the exchange. He was beginning to understand that so much more than he could imagine had happened since his death.

Sam closed his eyes. He opened them again and they were black.

"You're a demon," John gasped.

Sam shook his head. "No, but I am a monster. Dean, you have to kill me."

"And send you to Purgatory? No way." Purgatory was no place for his little brother.

"I think if you stab me with the demon knife, I'll just cease to exist. Please."

"No, Sammy." Dean couldn't kill Sam. He couldn't do it way back when his father told him he might have to. He couldn't even leave him dead when someone else had killed him. He didn't even kill him when Sam had no soul. What made Sam think he could kill him now?

"Dean, please. You know how I am on demon blood," Sam reminded him.

"You've drank demon blood before?" John asked, disbelievingly.

"Long story, dad," Dean told him once again. He knew Sam was right, though. He just didn't think he could do it.

They heard a flutter of wings. "Dean, wait."

"Cas, how did you know where we were?"

"I'm an angel. I always know where you are. I can fix Sam."

"Really?" Dean was reluctant to trust Cas. Something had been off with him ever since Purgatory. The only other options were to kill Sam or let him remain on a demon-blood high state forever, though, so Cas couldn't don much worse.

"Of course," Castiel answered and leaned down and touched Sam on the forehead.

Sam closed his eyes and reopened them shaking his head. "It's gone."

"You sure?" Dean asked.

Sam nodded. "Thanks, Cas," they both said.

"Who is this?" John aked.

"My name is Casstiel. I'm an angel of the Lord. You're John Winchester. Are you ready to return to Heaven."

"I thought I had more time," John checked his watch.

"You got 24 hours to speak to your father. Your father is gone. It's time to go back."

John hated long good-byes anyway. "OK," he nodded. "I love you boys. You know that right."

"Yes, sir," Sam and Dean said in unison. Sam smiled remembering how many times that had happened over the years.

John and Cas disappeared.

"Dean, we should destroy that key," Sam said.

"Yeah," Dean said, reaching into his pocket. He looked up in alarm. "Sammy, it's gone."

"You think Cas took it?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. But why?"

"Maybe we should discuss this back at the cabin," Sam suggested. They still had the angel-proofing sidgils up there.

"Yeah. After we give Grandpa a hunter's funeral."

"He earned it," Sam agreed.

The End.


End file.
